The Crazy Villain Regains His Sanity - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 32

In the end, Cheon Myeong-guk left after saying he would give serious consideration to granting me Immunity from Arrest.
He’d decided to believe what I’d told him—that I could control my strength.
Jung Ju-ho looked at me with admiration.

“You’re getting smoother with your tongue every day, aren’t you?”
“Thank you.”
“Especially that two-pronged strategy you pulled with Exemption Privilege and Immunity from Arrest—it was really something. Wow! If I were the director of the Awakener Security Division, my head would’ve exploded.”
“Two-pronged?”
“You weren’t aiming for Immunity from Arrest from the start, then?”

No, I wasn’t. I’d been aiming for both Exemption Privilege and Immunity from Arrest at the same time.
When I was a Blood Species, negotiation had never been something I needed. What I put on the table was the final offer, and the other side had no choice but to accept it.
But this time, I’d only managed to secure one of the two.
So in my heart, I’d been thinking I’d failed at the negotiation.

“I was aiming for Exemption Privilege as well.”
“That’s honestly impossible. If you’d kept pushing for it, even Director Cheon would’ve backed down.”
“Is that so?”
“I know you don’t seem like the type to think so, but Exemption Privilege carries enormous power.”

The annual budget allocated to Awakeners alone exceeds one hundred trillion won.
According to Jung Ju-ho, a Level 8 Powered Individual gains operational participation rights, and if you meddle with the budget while holding Exemption Privilege? That means you can commit massive corruption and no one can stop you.

“I didn’t know that.”
“Then what were you thinking when you brought up Exemption Privilege?”
“I was trying to change the provisions of the Villain Apprehension Act.”

For instance, when apprehending Villains outside cities, we could grant broader preemptive measures, or enhance the right to summary judgment.
The problem with excessive suppression of Villains occurs in cases involving petty criminals lurking within cities, but out-of-city Villains always carry weapons—ten out of ten times—and use cowardly tactics for attacks, so sweeping them away on sight is the best course.

“…It’s a blessing you weren’t granted Exemption Privilege.”

Jung Ju-ho wiped his chest.

“Doesn’t that make sense?”
“It does. I’d like to see that revised too, honestly. But thinking about you wielding that authority… it’s terrifying, frankly.”

That answer didn’t sit well with me. Crime rates are dropping because of me, and Civil Service Hunters are awakening in droves.
Was Berserker right? Does the world simply not understand me?

“You did well not mentioning Berserker.”
“It’s a trump card.”
“But if it comes out later, you could face unnecessary misunderstandings. It’d be better to reveal it to Director Cheon at an appropriate moment.”
“I’ll do my best to keep it hidden for now.”
“But couldn’t Berserker go around blabbing about it?”

Hmm. Come to think of it, Berserker might actually do that.
But there was one thing I was certain about.

“Who would believe that madman anyway?”
…….
“And Berserker pays closer attention to things than you’d think.”
“That madman?”
“Yes. He has a more rational side than expected.”

Jung Ju-ho doesn’t believe a word I’m saying. Berserker is insane, sure enough, but he’s the kind of insane you can reason with.
I can’t arrange a direct meeting and let them hash it out face to face.
Maybe I need to set up a surprise encounter.
The moment I stepped out of the National Guard Bureau, I stopped short at the sheer pile of messages waiting on my phone.

Berserker—got yourself measured at Level 8? Ha ha, congratulations.
Berserker—you’re Level 8? Did I lay this net on purpose?
Berserker—the world still underestimates you, I see.
Berserker—some fools will take the bait without thinking twice.
Berserker—I’m doing just fine.
Berserker—[photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached][photo attached]
.
.
.

…This lunatic is now photographing everything he eats and sending it to me.
Next time I see him, I’m smashing that phone.

* * *

When I’d visited my parents in Cheongju, they were reluctant about me moving to Seoul—until I told them I’d reached Level 8, at which point they readily agreed.
Rather than holding back their son while living in the provinces, they’d rather ride on his success, they said. It was a relief to hear.

“You said you’d be living separately. I think we should contribute something.”
“We should.”

With the proliferation of monsters and the villains expanding their territory, Seoul had become the safest city in South Korea—and property prices reflected it, soaring without limit. Even if my parents liquidated all their assets and came north, finding a decent place would be nearly impossible.
Yun-hui and I discussed how to supplement their budget. She mentioned taking out a loan, but I told her not to—I’d be hunting a monster soon enough.

“If you say so, I’ll just sit back and be grateful. I’m riding on my talented brother’s coattails too, you know.”

She’s grinning ear to ear, probably saving money. Why the need to economize? Could she have gotten a boyfriend?

“By the way, about discovering my Gift—there’s no other preparation needed, right?”
“None.”
“Really?”
“It’s like a fingerprint. It’s already inscribed within you.”
“If this gets out, it’d be huge, wouldn’t it?”
“Possibly.”
“Wait, why are you so lukewarm about such a goldmine? Tell Se-hui and it’s a mega-hit! You could commercialize it and be swimming in money!”

Yun-hui spoke with sparkling eyes, but I didn’t want to reveal that this ability was tied to my Gift.
I’ve decided to keep this ability secret from everyone except a handful of trusted people. Se-hui is credible, but since she’s ultimately a chaebol heiress, I decided to give it more thought.

“Well, then there’s nothing to be done.”

Yun-hui accepted it without further argument.
Today was the day we’d discover Yun-hui’s Gift, and Da-hyun had agreed to help in case anything went wrong.
Really, we didn’t need to prepare this thoroughly, but since it was our first attempt, we were being cautious.
Moments later, the doorbell chimed, and Da-hyun appeared.
In a black breeze shirt one-piece, Da-hyun carried a feminine charm quite different from her usual demeanor.

“Welcome, unnie!”

Like a puppy rushing at its food bowl, Yun-hui attached herself to Da-hyun, gushing about how pretty she looked.

“Hi, Yun-hui. Jun-ho, hello.”
“Brother?”
“Yeah. You’re not my junior anymore, and you’re going to outrank me soon, so we agreed I’d call you brother instead. Calling you ‘Superhuman’ felt awkward.”
“Hmm, is that so?”

It was a bit awkward, but I didn’t let it show.

“…They say a meek cat climbs onto the roof first. Looks like you need to step up your game too, sister.”
“Choi Yun-hui, get ready.”

I called out to Yun-hui, who was muttering something ominous, then turned to Jung Da-hyun.

“What I need you to do today is administer Recovery Potions in case something goes wrong.”
“Understood.”

I handed Jung Da-hyun two Recovery Potions and explained to Yun-hui how to identify Gifts.
My unique Gift, Hemohagia, allows me to extract—or more precisely, copy—an opponent’s Gift by consuming their blood. The blood from the heart is most effective; the farther you get from the heart, the less likely you are to read the Gift accurately.
This had led me to a thought.
If a Hunter who hasn’t undergone Gift Awakening could read the information encoded in their blood, wouldn’t they be able to awaken their Gift?
Gift Awakening comes in two forms—innate and acquired. For acquired awakening, I’d thought that if you could identify a direction of potential suited to you, the awakening becomes easier when you work toward that direction.
Today, I intended to read the Gift information encoded in Yun-hui’s blood.

“Let’s begin.”
“Okay.”

Thunk!

“……!”

As my fingertip pressed sharply into the area beside Yun-hui’s heart, about one knuckle’s worth of skin sank inward.
Yun-hui’s eyes flew open in shock and she staggered, but Jung Da-hyun caught her and quickly sprayed the Recovery Potion.
I lifted my blood-stained finger and consumed the blood, trying to identify what kind of Gifts Yun-hui could potentially awaken.
Since it wasn’t blood from the heart, it wasn’t perfect, but drawing on my accumulated experience, I began to identify and classify the Gifts Yun-hui could awaken.
As expected, several types of Gifts existed.
The Horizontal Step—which allows movement across ten meters left or right—Cleaning, which washes away foreign matter, and Gluttony, which slightly increases energy storage capacity.
All useless Gifts. But when I detected the final Gift, my eyes sparkled.

“Choi Yun-hui.”
“Ow, living this long and I finally get a hole through my chest. It hurts like hell. Is there something? It’s not completely nothing, right?”

I nodded at her anxious question.

“There are a few. And I found one worth using.”
“What is it?”
“Indomitable.”
“Indomitable? Never heard of it.”

It was a Gift I’d seen exactly once before. Its power was truly formidable.

“It’s a Unique Gift. Even when exhausted and your Force is drained, you can maintain full combat effectiveness until you’re completely depleted.”

Awakeners are still human, after all—their attack power is ultimately determined by stamina and Force. The difference between 100% condition and 10% condition is stark, and the common strategy is to force the opponent’s stamina to depletion.
But Indomitable lets you unleash full power even at 10%. Your opponent has to endure attacks that never diminish in intensity from start to finish.

“That’s incredible, isn’t it?”
“You can’t maintain full power from the start. It requires brutal training.”

Only when drops of sweat accumulate into a river can you truly wield full combat power. Yun-hui, meeting my gaze, let out a shriek of alarm.

“Wait, wait! Stop! Don’t even think it!”
“Why?”
“Because your expression is scary as hell? I know you’re planning to run me ragged!”
“That’s the only way to use Indomitable.”

I stopped hiding my thoughts.
There’s no personal feeling in this. I’m simply helping Yun-hui grow further.

“Don’t be ridiculous! No personal feeling? You’re thrilled to push me around.”
“When did I—”
“Right now. The corners of your mouth just curled up.”

I’ve grown soft in this peace. To let my expression slip like that. Or was it a mistake because she’s my sister? The moment I touched my mouth with my hand, Yun-hui cried out.

“See! You’re thrilled! Your mouth was curled up the whole time!”
“Da-hyun. Will you help?”
“Of course, oppa. Indomitable—I’ve only heard about it, but what a rare Gift. Yun-hui, let’s head to the training grounds right away. The sooner we do this, the sooner you’ll awaken your Gift.”
“…I thought Da-hyun was on my side. So the trainer and assistant trainer are in cahoots. Is this what it’s like being excluded from the National Guard Bureau? I want to transfer there too!”
“Se-hui would be hurt to hear that. We’re all working this hard for you, Yun-hui.”
“Couldn’t you dial back the effort just a little?”
“I’ll do my very best to push you along.”

Da-hyun and I took Yun-hui to the training grounds.
Soon after, Yun-hui’s delighted screams marked the beginning of our training session.

* * *

After concluding negotiations with Cheon Myeong-guk, the government finally approved Choi Jun-ho’s demands.
He was granted Immunity from Arrest and would operate as a government-affiliated Powered Individual.

<Birth of Korea’s Youngest Level 8 Powered Individual!>
<New Powered Individual Killed the Puppeteer!>
<Korean Government Signs Regular Contract with Youngest Powered Individual!>
<Level 8 Powered Individual Born from the National Guard Bureau!>
<Korea’s Advanced Awakener Education System Astounds the World!>
<K-Awakener Education System Praised by America, Shocking China, Feared by Japan!>

“…Finally, I can breathe.”

Cheon Myeong-guk watched as articles poured out in rapid succession and felt relief wash over him.
The negotiations had been brief, but they’d been a relentless series of tense moments.
The government had initially shown reluctance over granting Immunity from Arrest, but time had been on Choi Jun-ho’s side.
He was a prodigy who’d reached Level 8 at the youngest age ever. Rumors circulated that America, which had sent observers, was already preparing budget allocations and support packages to recruit Choi Jun-ho. Not only neighboring nations but every country capable of making proposals was positioning itself to pursue him aggressively.
The major guilds were even more aggressive. They were preparing unprecedented contract bonuses—the largest ever offered—and even stock options in prime subsidiaries slated for listing.
It was certain as daylight that Choi Jun-ho’s value would only increase with time. Judging that any further delay would mean losing him even if they offered both privileges, Cheon Myeong-guk had declared his personal responsibility and pushed hard for granting the Immunity from Arrest.
And this result was the fruit of that effort.

“Well played.”

The symbolic weight Choi Jun-ho carried was truly extraordinary. He was the youngest Level 8 in his twenties—that alone mattered. His skill had already reached full maturity. He possessed abundant practical experience and proven results. These were exceptional.
What had caught Cheon Myeong-guk’s attention was that Choi Jun-ho lacked the vanity, pointless desire for fame, or avarice typical of young prodigy Awakeners.
Young Awakeners sometimes made unreasonable demands—requests for private aircraft, government treasure-grade equipment—but Choi Jun-ho had none of those desires. This meant the government wouldn’t face additional unreasonable demands from him. That was a genuine advantage.
The only concern was his heavy hand—his casualty rate—but since excessive suppression incidents had noticeably decreased recently, as he himself had explained, Cheon Myeong-guk decided to trust him.

“It must have been a failure in controlling his strength.”

Anyone with hot blood made mistakes sometimes.
Cheon Myeong-guk chose to believe in Choi Jun-ho’s good faith.

“But why did he ask for the journalists’ information?”

He’d been puzzled by the request for information on today’s attending journalists, but he’d handed it over without objection.
Surely nothing would go wrong.
The announcement of the new Level 8 Powered Individual took place at the National Assembly Press Briefing Room. Cheon Myeong-guk first declared the recruitment of Choi Jun-ho to the journalists, answered their questions, and then introduced Choi Jun-ho as he made his appearance.

“I look forward to working with you all.”
“I’ll do my best to apprehend the villain.”
……

He chalked up the vaguely off-kilter feeling to hypersensitivity.
The spotlights in the hall converged on Choi Jun-ho all at once.
Making his first public appearance as a Level 8 Superhuman, he evoked the image of a film actor.
Handsome features reminiscent of a nobleman, proportions carved to perfection, a lean muscular frame—dressed in charcoal-gray tailoring with an all-black necktie, he might have stepped straight out of a movie premiere.
Most would’ve faltered under such concentrated attention, but he didn’t twitch a muscle as he introduced himself.

“I’m Choi Jun-ho with the National Guard Bureau. Going forward, I’ll be working in coordination with the bureau.”

After the brief introduction came the question period.

“Kim Jae-deok from Mun Song-il News. I’m curious about your future aspirations.”
“I want to contribute to making Korea a villain-free nation.”
“Kim Song-hwa, Hanuri Newspaper. I understand you eliminated the Puppeteer—I’d like to know more about the process…….”
“The Puppeteer used Force Wavelength to manipulate puppets…….”
“From Revival Contents…….”

Questions from various media outlets poured in, and each time, polished answers flowed out.
The removal of the Puppeteer in particular had unfolded like a gripping drama.

‘Not a worry in sight.’

Even Cheon Myeong-guk, who’d fretted over Choi Jun-ho’s sharp edges, felt considerably lighter.
Perhaps all his anxieties had been unnecessary after all.
Then, near the end of the press conference, he spotted someone being given the microphone and his expression hardened.
A man in his late forties with a bulldog-like face.

“Oh Chang-mun from Speed Force. I’ve investigated Superhuman Choi Jun-ho, and I’ve found that as a Civil Service Hunter, he was responsible for numerous excessive suppressions that caused considerable social controversy. There are many victims who sustained permanent disability or maiming as a result. Don’t you feel any remorse toward them?”
……

The briefing room fell silent.
Gazes converged from all directions, but Oh Chang-mun waited for an answer with an unbothered expression.
Choi Jun-ho picked up the microphone.

“Mr. Oh Chang-mun of Speed Force.”
“Yes.”

Though he tried to seem composed, the journalists’ faces betrayed their anticipation of his response.
The younger someone was, the more readily they took such bait. How much more so a twenty-something Level 8 Superhuman brimming with vigor and fearless of the world.
But the words that left Choi Jun-ho’s lips were entirely at odds with what the journalists expected.

“I looked into it, and I found you’ve been writing critical articles about me since I first began apprehending villains. ‘Excessive suppression,’ ‘overreach of authority,’ ‘more brutal than the villains themselves’—that sort of thing.”
“I reported the facts.”
“A journalist like you, however.”

Choi Jun-ho’s expressionless eyes turned toward Oh Chang-mun.

“Accepted hospitality bribes from a villain organization in Seodaemun-gu and defended drug trafficking.”
……

Oh Chang-mun’s face crumpled. It was his life’s worst scandal, broadcast extensively on television five years prior. It had taken him over three years to return to the frontlines after that.
Cheon Myeong-guk, who’d been watching quietly, jolted to his feet in shock. He’d never imagined Choi Jun-ho would bring this up so brazenly.
What was he doing now? Had he just gone after a journalist outright?
Could the information request from earlier have been for this very purpose…….

“Right now, a Superhuman meant to protect the citizenry is making threats against a journalist over topics irrelevant to the matter——!”

Oh Chang-mun never finished his shout. Choi Jun-ho was suddenly standing before him.

“You accept favors from a villain and take his side. Then you’re not a journalist—you’re a villain yourself.”

Crack! Snap!

“Ahhhhh!”

Both of Oh Chang-mun’s arms shattered in opposite directions in an instant. A light tap to his shins, and both legs broke as well.
With all four limbs broken, Oh Chang-mun dragged himself across the floor, screaming.

“I don’t think Oh Chang-mun is a journalist. I think he’s a villain.”

Choi Jun-ho looked around the room.

“Anyone here disagree?”
“…….”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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